Vanguard has been a big part of building my net worth, and I’m always watching to see if they are keeping the culture. Barron’s last week ran the article Vanguard Conquered the ETF World. Where It’s Aiming Next, but it’s probably behind a paywall. Well, the three main areas are high-yield cash savings accounts, financial advice, and fixed-income investing. Let’s explore them all a bit. Financial advice. I find this the most interesting area of […]

Mabel Nunez is the founder & Chief Education Officer at Girl$ on The Money – a stock market investing education company targeted toward individuals who are underrepresented in the investing world. Mabel grew up in the South Bronx as an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, with limited resources & a strong emphasis on education from her father. She learned very little about personal finance or investing while in school until she was in college, where […]

A year ago I wrote the blog post Why I’m Bearish on U.S. Stocks (for the Second Time Since 2017). Since then U.S. stocks are up 16% (total return) and my bearish prediction turned out to be misguided. So where did I go wrong? And how can you prevent yourself from making the same kind of error in the future? This Time is Different (When Overfitting Fails) A year ago I saw a few signs that reminded me of the 2021 market exuberance: Chamath Palihapitiya was filing for a new SPAC Meta was paying $250M+ to hire individual AI researchers The S&P 500’s Price-to-Sales ratio was back near an all-time high As I stated, “It’s not that any one of these things represents a mania, but collectively they do.” While there definitely is some mania around AI, each of the signs I focused on ended up being less significant than I originally believed. First, Chamath launching a new SPAC isn’t a sign of anything. He is going to do what’s in his best interest, regardless of what the rest of the market is doing. If he can find a way to cash in, he will, whether it’s crypto, AI, or something else. Second, Mark Zuckerberg has been known to “overpay” for things today only to look like a genius in hindsight. I remember when he bought Instagram for $1 billion and many thought he was crazy. Looking back now it’s arguably the best acquisition in business history. The fact that he paid a few billion dollars for the world’s best AI researchers is another such bet that I weighed too heavily. This is what Zuck does. We will just have to wait and see if it pays off. Lastly, sometimes your data is wrong. Below is the chart I posted a year ago of the S&P 500’s price-to-sales ratio going back to the 1940s (from DQYDJ.com): As you can see, the P/S metric peaked at 3.41 in 1999. After seeing the run-up in the ratio in 1999, in 2021, and again in 2025, I concluded that we were in bubble territory. Unfortunately, this data series was inaccurate, but I didn’t know it at the time. I’m not sure exactly what changed in how the data was constructed. What I can say is that the revised series matches other sources I’ve cross-checked. If you go to look at the price-to-sales ratio of the S&P 500 today on DQYDJ.com, the 1999 peak is now around 2.09 (instead of 3.41): This chart tells a very different story. When the P/S ratio passed 2.09 (the 1999 level) in 2017, market conditions weren’t anything like those during the DotCom bubble. No one thought there was the same kind of froth in 2017 as in 1999. And the ratio has kept climbing since, to around 3.5 today, without any accompanying DotCom-style implosion. Therefore, the only correct interpretation of the P/S ratio over the last decade is that it doesn’t signal what it used to.

Good morning! And happy BACK TO SCHOOL SEASON for all those parents out there!! If you can believe it we’ve now got one in elementary school, one in middle school, and now one in high school Man I’m getting old… At any rate, who wants $1,000??? 😉 It’s been a while since we shared this 401(k) contest, but old timers will remember that over a half dozen BudgetsAreSexy readers have won it in years past, so maybe this time it’ll be YOU?? It’s hosted by Jackson, Grant Investment Advisors Inc. who hopes to energize 401(k) participants into learning more, and ultimately investing more. So you can be a 401(k) Millionaire one day like our friend, Fritz! All you have to do is answer a couple of questions (but take your time and really put some effort into it!), and you’ll be entered to win one of **THREE* $1,000 cash awards. That you do not have to invest into your 401(k) lol… Here’s the main thing to marinate on before you start filling it out: If you were to advise co-workers about why they should contribute to (and/or maximize) their 401(k)s, what would you say? What actions might you take to inspire non-participants to participate in their 401(k)s? Once you know what you want to say – and hopefully it’s super personal and/or creative and/or funny! – you can enter directly here: 401kchampion.com/2026-application Deadline to submit is *this Friday* August 28, 2026 by 11:59 P.M. EST, and you must be currently participating (whether employed or retired) in your employer’s 401(k) plan (not a 403(b) plan or other type of plan). You must also be 21 years old or over and a legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia. GOOD LUCK!!! I want to continue our streak of having winners here, please! And good job on investing into your 401(k) which is a reward all of its own Your busy busy parental friend, [This post, A $1,000 Contest for Sharing Your Love of 401(k)s!, was first published by J. Money on Budgets Are Sexy]

The title sounds ridiculous but hear me out because actually it happened. A German citizen who worked for Amazon had shares of stock. Lots of shares. But because of an address mix up, the financial institution that held them was unable to reach him for several years via mail. Because of this, after a few years (3), the institution deemed the property as abandoned and turned it over to California’s unclaimed property division. Three years of returned mail is all it took for the shares to go to the state. California, completely within its rights, then sold the stock and held the cash until the citizen claimed it. I don’t know why selling it was necessary from the perspective of the owner (I know why from the state’s perspective, they can use the cash until he shows up!). By the time he did, the stock was worth significantly more. The case worked its way to the Supreme Court but the court declined to hear it. And if you’re wondering – this was all completely legal per state unclaimed property laws. Quick Answer: Yes, it is possible.Every state has laws allowing financial assets, including stocks, to be transferred to the state when they’re legally considered abandoned. In most states, the dormancy period is three or five years, but each state defines the triggering event differently.Once securities reach the state, some states eventually sell them, potentially leaving you entitled to cash rather than the shares and any future appreciation… which can be significant. Table of ContentsThe Government Isn’t “Taking” Your StockThe $1.6 Million Amazon Stock StoryHow Do You Avoid This?Securities Unclaimed Property Rules by StateReview Specific State Laws for AbandonmentIllinois: Where Logging In MattersNew York: Returned Mail Is ImportantSouth Carolina: Several Different Events Can Start the ClockReview Specific State Laws for LiquidationWhy Do These Laws Exist?How to Keep Your Investment Accounts From Becoming Unclaimed PropertyCheck for Unclaimed PropertyBottom Line The Government Isn’t “Taking” Your Stock I learned this story through a Fox News opinion article sensationally titled “Governments can take your stocks without your permission. It happens all the time.” It’s inaccurate because the government doesn’t really “take it.” It’s been deemed abandoned and so it has to go somewhere. They don’t seize it in some kind of asset forfeiture situation. The end result is messy. The process begins when a financial institution can’t reach the owner within a specified period of time, which varies by state. If a bank has your money and can’t seem to find you, what are they supposed to do? If someone sends you a check that you never cash, they still owe you the money but they can no longer find you. They can’t be forced to look for you forever, that’s just not reasonable. They also shouldn’t just hold it and wait for you to remember because youwon’t. So, they send it to the state’s unclaimed property division and it’s now on you to recover it. The legal process is called escheatment, when financial institutions

In this week’s stock market outlook, Joel Wenger examines the current market trend, price performance, and headline risks.

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Don’t miss an episode of our podcast, Personal Finance for Long-Term Investors. Available on all podcast players. Here’s the latest episode: Reader Doug wrote to me this week: Any thoughts on using one of the ‘Big Three’ as a financial advisor.  Fidelity, Schwab and Vanguard have different programs at different price points (shown below).   For some background…it’s vital to remember that these companies swim in various lanes at the same time. They are custodians – places where you can open and keep accounts. They are fund managers – organizations that offer ETFs, mutual funds, etc. that you can pay to invest in. They also offer advisory services. These organizations can be great custodians and excellent fund managers, yet have different standards for their advisory services. I’ve got some thoughts for you, Doug. There’s a Spectrum I’m biased here. It’s important I disclose that. Though I’d like to think my bias is “pro-client.” Here are some great questions to help you discern between good, bad, and ugly advisors. And definitions about how fees are charged. I’d also recommend this podcast episode too: The broader point is that: Some advisors provide detailed planning. Others don’t. Some advisors sell commissioned products (insurance, annuities, etc) and others are fee-only. Some advisors charge high fees, others low fees. Some advisors intentionally work with 40, 60, 80 clients. Other advisors work with 200+. All else being equal, you’d probably prefer an advisor who provides detailed planning, is fee-only, spends plenty of time with you, and charges reasonable fees. So – is that what the “Big Three” provide? Service Tiers We should be looking at the “dedicated advisor tier” in the table below. The robo-only and hybrid tiers provide very little human expertise. They are essentially “investing-only” services. That’s fine – if that’s what you want. But if you are looking for true financial planning, we want to look at the “Dedicated Advisor” tier. Fees Vanguard is the clear winner here at 0.30%. Fidelity and Schwab charge fees much closer to what small, independent financial planners charge. Fidelity’s fees start very high. Well above 1.0% on the first $1M in a client’s portfolio. Schwab’s fees are more reasonable. Client Service and Planning Client service and in-depth planning are where the rubber meets the road. I’ve had a ~dozen prospective clients (and a handful of actual clients) talk to me after working with one of these Big Three. I also regularly read online communities – both of individual investors (customers of the Big Three) and of other financial advisors (including many who work for the Big Three). The commentary always sounds the same. Advisors at the Big Three are overworked. They have too many clients to serve each client well.